SEPTEMBER 1, 2007
5TH RANKED ST. JOHN FISHER POSTS 49-7
SEASON-OPENING WIN OVER KING'S
WILKES-BARRE -- Senior quarterback Rob Kramer
completed 14-of-20 passes for 145 yards and four touchdowns and fifth-ranked St.
John Fisher College used a 28-point second quarter to open the 2007
season with a 49-7 victory over host King's College Saturday in
Wilkes-Barre.
The Cardinals, who reached the NCAA Division III
playoff semifinals a year, broke open a scoreless game in the second
quarter following a King's turnover. After the Monarchs had driven to
the St. John Fisher 21-yard line, Micah Norton picked off Monarch
quarterback Jeff Searfass at the seven and returned the ball 35 yards to
the Cardinal 42.
From there, Kramer would engineer an 11-play,
58-yard drive capped by a 20-yard scoring toss to Phil Galletto. Chris
Pierri added the point after as Fisher took a 7-0 lead with 11:54
remaining in the half.
Two possessions later King's would respond when
Justin Zlotek intercepted Kramer at the Monarch 42. Searfass would find
Jeramia Jones for 29 yards and a subsequent personal foul penalty on the
Cardinals moved the ball to the Fisher 14. Two plays later, Searfass hit
Mike Verbitski in the right corner of the end zone to get the Monarchs
on the board. Tim Lust's conversion kick would knot the score at 7-7
with 8:33 left in the half.
St. John Fisher, though, would immediately respond
on its next possession when Ryan Hanson took a first-down handoff and
raced off right tackle 64 yards to the end zone to give the Cardinals
the lead. Pierri's kick would push the score to 14-7 with 8:08 remaining
in the half.
After a Monarch punt, the Cardinals would extend
the lead to 21-7 with a six-play, 44-yard drive, set up by a 20-yard run by
Kramer to the Monarch 21. Three plays later, Kramer found tight end
Chris Harmon in the end zone for a 21-7 Fisher lead.
On King's next possession Searfass was hit
attempting to pass and the ball popped up in the air, into the arms of
Cardinal linebacker Anthony Cucit at the Monarch 22. Kramer would
eventually hit Tim Marion with a nine-yard scoring toss to stretch the
Fisher advantage to 28-7 with 2:06 remaining in the half.
In the third quarter, Fisher would take the
opening drive of the half 60 yards on nine plays, culminating with a two-yard
scoring pass from Kramer to Harmon to give the Cardinals a 35-7 lead.
After King's was held on downs at the St. John
Fisher 41, the Cardinals answered with a 59-yard drive. Hanson would
carry the ball five times for 47 yards in the series, including a two-yard touchdown
with 1:23 left in the third period.
St. John Fisher would close out the scoring in the
fourth quarter when Grant Gibson picked off Searfass and sprinted 59
yards to pay dirt with 6:22 left in the contest.
Despite both teams registering 17 first-downs, St.
John Fisher out gained King's 395-274 in total offense, holding the
Monarchs to 60 yards on the ground. Hanson led a running attack that
amassed 224 yards with 126 yards on nine carries while James Reile added
76 yards on 18 attempts. Eight different Cardinals caught passes, led by
Harmon with four receptions for 47 yards. Galletto also made four
catches for 40 yards while Marion added three receptions for 43 yards.
For King's, Searfass completed 17-of-38 passes for
214 yards with one score and three interceptions. Jeff Field led Monarch
rushers with 31 yards on 14 carries while Jeramia had 24 yards on eight
rushes and caught two passes for 38 yards. Rick Ritter led King's with
six receptions for 61 yards while Chris Maloney added five for 58 yards.
The Monarchs, however, would hurt themselves with turnovers, giving the
ball away four times, three coming in St. John Fisher territory. The
fourth came on Gibson's interception when King's had excellent field
position at its own 44 on the play.
Tore Alaimo and Zlotek led King's with 10 tackles
each.
